The two obvious targets from Mwanza are very different. Bukoba, on the western shore of Lake Victoria, can be reached in a day by air but is much better as an overnight on the MV Victoria ferry, returning the following night. The western corridor of the Serengeti — entered at the Ndabaka Gate about three hours east of Mwanza — gives access to a less-visited part of the park and to the river crossings of the great migration in May to July.
Closer to the city, the Bujora Sukuma Museum at Kisesa is a half-day rather than a day. Saanane Island National Park is half a day. The lake fishing villages around Igombe and Nyamatala to the south of the city are quiet and pleasant for a longer half-day with a hired car.
